Dec. 20, 2007

Box Score

ORLANDO, FL - Down by as many as 14 points in the second half, the La Salle University Women's Basketball team mounted a come-back, scoring 43 points after the break, to register a 66-62 victory over Appalachian State Thursday night in non-conference action at the UCF Arena in the last day of the Central Florida Classic.

After scoring a career-high 20 points a day earlier, Jamie Walsh led the Explorers charge with 15 of her now career-high 23 points in the second half, while Carlene Hightower and Morgan Robertson each added eight in the frame to give the Explorers their first two-game winning streak of the season.

Appalachian State (2-8) built its lead to 41-27 after Robin Colbert recorded a three-point play on a fast-break lay-up and made free throw with 16:20 left in the game.

La Salle would score on its next three possessions and used a 10-2 run to get the deficit to six points. Robertson scored four points in the run, as did Hightower, and when Walsh drained a 15-foot jumper at the 14:58 mark, La Salle trailed 43-37.

The Mountaineers would push their lead back to nine before a 7-0 run by the Explorers got them to within a basket. Walsh hit a three, Margaret Elderton scored on a driving lay-up, then Melanie Gibbons followed with a lay-up.

With only eight players dressed, La Salle got production from all of them in the comeback effort after Appalachian State pushed its lead back to six. Alyse Hoover knocked down a pair of free throws to make it 52-48. Then Danielle Mickiewicz and Meghan Ahl responded to Appalachian State baskets with buckets of their own to keep La Salle within three.

Ahl's basket was the start of another 7-0 La Salle run. During it, Hightower scored on a driving lay-up to bring La Salle to within one at 58-57 with 5:14 to play. That was also her 1,100th career point, which is good for 17th all-time. She would add a basket one possession later and with 4:25, La Salle had its first lead since 10 minutes in the first half.

Mickiewicz would convert one-of-two foul shots to give La Salle a two-point lead, but Whitney Randolph would knock down a 16-foot jumper to tie the game at 60-all with 2:44 to play.    

Twenty-three seconds later, Walsh hit her fifth three-pointer of the game to take a 63-60 lead, but Whitney Tossie pulled the Mountaineers to within one after two foul shots. Elderton converted just one of hers on the other end to make it a two-point advantage.

Appalachian State had the ball with 38 seconds left and held for pretty much the last shot. A corner three-point jumper by Frances Hernandez missed. Then Walsh connected on two free throws with six ticks left to seal the win.

Walsh would add five assists to her totals, while Hightower, who scored 16 points, had a team-high six rebounds. Elderton would also have five assists to go with her eight points, as Robertson and Gibbons each had five boards.

The Explorers outscored the Mountaineers 43-26 in the second half, after allowing 36 points in the first. That included 14 second chance points and 13 points off turnovers. After the break, they limited Appalachian State to just six and seven points in those categories respectively.

La Salle (5-6) will return to action after a week off when the Explorers host Sacred Heart, Friday, Dec. 28 at 1 PM.